McAlister’s Deli

This deli concept is on a roll!

In the movie â€œSteel Magnolias,â€ the character played by Dolly Parton affectionately refers to â€œsweet teaâ€¦house wine of the South.â€ At McAlisterâ€™s Deli, founded in Oxford, Mississippi, the sweet tea is legendary, even for a town in the Deep South. Thatâ€™s because the tea, like every other item on the menu at McAlisterâ€™s, is prepared with a passion to do everything first-rate.

To say that the McAlisterâ€™s Deli approach is working is an understatement. McAlisterâ€™s has maintained strong yearly growth, and now boasts more than 200 units, both franchisedand corporate owned, in 19 states.

The first McAlisterâ€™s Deli was opened in a converted gas station in 1989. The principle behind concept was simpleâ€”provide fast, personal service and great food. From the start, customers loved the delicious, hearty deli sandwiches, freshly prepared salads and over-sized stuffed potatoes served quickly with a side of Southern charm.

McAlisterâ€™s Deli helped pioneer the â€œquick-casualâ€ format. Every phase of the operation has been carefully planned to enhance the customerâ€™s experience and create efficiency. Guests order at the front counter, receive drinks and appetizers, then select a table. Orders are brought to the table. The menu is developed so that a maximum number of items can be prepared from a limited selection of ingredients. There are no fryers, no mixers and no grills.

McAlisterâ€™s is all about the food. Presented on huge blackboards, McAlisterâ€™s offers over 100 menu items.There are over two dozen madeto-order sandwich options featuring regional favorites like the New Orleans Muffaletta, the signature McAlisterâ€™s Club and the popular Memphian sandwich. A variety of fresh salads addresses the demand for lighter,
healthier fare and the enormous overstuffed potatoes feature creative variations including the Spud Max, weighing in at a hefty two pounds.

The McAlisterâ€™s team leaves nothing to chance, and the same attention to planning and detail is evident in their franchise support. Franchisees receive extensive classroom and hands-on training. McAlisterâ€™s will guide you through design, construction and theopening of your restaurant and will be there for you with continuing support, product development, workshops and research.

McAlisterâ€™s Deli franchisees receive a wealth of high-quality marketing materials, in-store promotional programs, catering programs, public relations strategies and much more. McAlisterâ€™s franchise program has been designed to help ambitious, determined franchise owners reach the full potential in their markets.

McAlisterâ€™s Deliâ€™s strong franchise growth has been the result of its conscious recruitment of experienced multiunit foodservice operators as franchise owners. Those with experience can best appreciate how McAlisterâ€™s Deli has struck a great balance between meeting the needs of increasingly demanding consumers, and the needs of those who own and operate the franchise units. Itâ€™s that balance thatâ€™s made McAlisterâ€™s Deli one of the fastest growing foodservice concepts in the nation.